Thomas Dorsey (1899-1993 - not the famous ball player) has an honored title of 'The Father of Gospel Music', and his music is loved around the world. The journey to this title and fame was a very difficult one.
Thomas loved music. At a very early age, long before his music education at the Chicago College of Composition and Arranging, he was playing piano in a Vaudeville act. After college, he frequented the jazz clubs, gaining quite a reputation as the very talented 'Georgia Tom'.
In 1921, at the age of 22, Thomas gave his life to Jesus. Almost immediately he left the jazz clubs and began writing Gospel music. He took great effort to circulate his musical scores, but it was three long years before anyone started to notice. Little by little his reputation grew, not only as a songwriter but as a church music director.
In 1932 while the now Reverend Dorsey was leading a church service, a man came on to the platform to hand him a telegram - his wife had just died in childbirth. Within 24 hours his newborn baby died also. Thomas quickly spiraled downward into the depths of despair, doubting the goodness of God and determining never to write another hymn.
A week after that horrible, life changing day, Thomas was deep into his grief, sitting alone at a piano, in a friend's music room. Into the room came a heavy peace such as he had never known before. As that peace enveloped him, Thomas felt the urge to play the piano. His fingers found a familiar melody and the words to Precious Lord, Take My Hand began to well up from his heart and to spill out of his mouth. God had given him a song that would not only lift him from despair, but would also change the course of his music career.
Precious Lord, Take My Hand has been translated into more than 40 languages, has been sung by some of the biggest names in Gospel music, including Mahalia Jackson and Elvis Presley, and it was Dr. Martin Luther King's favorite hymn. Reverend Thomas Dorsey went on to write many more hymns, including the famous Peace in the Valley, which when recorded by the Sunshine Boys in 1951, became the first Gospel song recording in history to sell more than one million copies.
Precious Lord, Take My Hand
Precious Lord, take my hand,
Lead me on, let me stand,
I am tired, I am weak, I am worn;
Through the storm, through the night,
Lead me on to the light:
Refrain:
Take my hand, precious Lord,
Lead me home.
When my way grows drear,
Precious Lord, linger near,
When my life is almost gone,
Hear my cry, hear my call,
Hold my hand lest I fall:
Refrain
When the darkness appears
And the night draws near,
And the day is past and gone,
At the river I stand,
Guide my feet, hold my hand:
SERMON TITLE: I WANT TO HOLD YOUR HAND
ISA.41:10-13 (key verse 13)
10 fear not, for I am with you;
be not dismayed, for I am your God;
I will strengthen you, I will help you,
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
11 Behold, all who are incensed against you
shall be put to shame and confounded;
those who strive against you
shall be as nothing and shall perish.
12 You shall seek those who contend with you,
but you shall not find them;
those who war against you
shall be as nothing at all.
13 For I, the Lord your God,
hold your right hand;
it is I who say to you, “Fear not,
I am the one who helps you.”
In 1964, the Beatles had a hit song,, I want to hold your hand.
Well, in 2016 , the Lord God, tells us that He will hold our right hand
The amplified bible puts it this way.......AMP) 10Fear not [there is nothing to fear], for I am with you; do not look around you in terror and be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen and harden you to difficulties, yes, I will help you; yes, I will hold you up and retain you with My [victorious] right hand of rightness and justice. 11Behold, all they who are enraged and inflamed against you shall be put to shame and confounded; they who strive against you shall be as nothing and shall perish. 12You shall seek those who contend with you but shall not find them; they who war against you shall be as nothing, as nothing at all. 13For I the Lord your God hold your right hand; I am the Lord, Who says to you, Fear not; I will help you!
When you are weary, and burdened with sorrow, ask the Lord to hold your hand.
The Lord told Isaac, in Gen. 26:24 And the Lord appeared to him the same night and said, “I am the God of Abraham your father. Fear not, for I am with you and will bless you and multiply your offspring for my servant Abraham's sake.”
In Deut. 3:22 The Lord told Joshua,, You shall not fear them, for it is the Lord your God who fights for you
What are you afraid of?
Recently Caty Medrano published an article called Top 10 Strong Human Fears.
These are the top fears shared by people everywhere. The list in many ways is self-explanatory.
10. Losing Your Freedom
9. The Unknown
8. Pain
7. Disappointment
6. Misery
5. Loneliness
4. Ridicule
3. Rejection
2. Death
1. Failure Many of these fears are tied together, such as death and the unknown, rejection and ridicule, pain and misery, and failure and loneliness. We can also observe that these are mostly existential fears that describe an inner condition of the heart. That is, these are not fears of specific things. In the latter category, I ran across a Gallup Poll answering the question, What scares Americans most?
In order the answers are:
1. Snakes
2. Public Speaking
3. Heights
4. Being closed in a small space
5. Spiders
6. Needles and getting shots
7. Mice
8. Flying on an airplane
9. Dogs
10. Thunder and lightning
11. Going to the doctor
12. The dark
But through all these fears, Our Awesome God, tells us to fear not, I will hold your hand.
